Robotic, underwater vehicles may give scientists a new tool to better understand shark behavior. These robots may be able to travel where humans cannot in order to show scientists how sharks behave in the wild. “We wanted to test the REMUS SharkCam technology to prove that is was a viable tool for observing marine animals—sharks in this case—and to collect …

Brian Bedford, the British-born performer who was one of the great stage actors of his generation, with a peculiar affinity for the classics, and a particular association with Canada’s Stratford Shakespeare Festival, died Jan. 13 in Santa Barbara, CA. He was 80. The 80-year-old had battled cancer for two-and-a-half years, according to a Stratford rep, who also told the Canadian …

A University of Windsor professor is one of about two-dozen people being invested into the Order of Ontario this year. Hoda ElMaraghy, who has worked at the university for more than two decades, is described in a news release as having been the first female dean of a faculty of engineering in Canada. The news release also says her research …

Former Backstreet Boy Nick Carter reportedly spent time in jail in the Florida Keys. TMZ and E News are reporting authorities arrested Carter at the Hog’s Breath Saloon in Key West.

Ashley Olsen, an American girl, continues to be discovered dead at her flat in Florence, Italy. A Senegalese man has been arrested by Italian police over the murder of a US woman who was found in her Florence apartment. The man, identified as Diaw Cheik Tidiane, met Ashley Olsen in a local nightclub and the two had consensual sex in …

Alan Rickman, the British stage and screen actor best known internationally for his roles in Harry Potter and Die Hard, has died in London at the age of 69. As reported by BBC News, his family said in a statement that he had died “surrouned by friends and family.” We can spend weeks arguing over Alan Rickman’s definitive role. To …

A legal battle over the sanity of convicted terrorist Chiheb Esseghaier is set to stretch into the appeal phase after an Ontario judge appointed two lawyers to act in his case Wednesday. Esseghaier, who was last year found guilty of plotting to plow up a VIA rail train in the Province is set to appeal his terror related conviction.

The Manitoba government is spending more than $500,000 and has created a task force to lead a co-ordinated response to illegal fentanyl use. The province is looking to get ahead of a potential fentanyl crisis with a new task force, antidote distribution kits and public awareness campaign, officials announced Tuesday. Fentanyl is 100 times more powerful than morphone and 40 …

Facing an impeachment effort, Gov. Paul LePage said Tuesday he’ll skip the traditional State of the State speech to a joint session of the Maine Legislature. The move, if it is carried out, would mark the latest chapter in LePage’s frosty relationship with lawmakers. The governor has repeatedly criticized legislators since taking office in 2010, but he’s no longer on …

Curbing brain inflammation may help people treat and prevent Alzheimer’s disease, according to a landmark new study. It was originally thought that Alzheimer’s disease disturbs the brain’s immune response, but this latest study adds to evidence that inflammation in the brain can in fact drive the development of the disease. The findings suggest that by reducing this inflammation, progression of …

A team of scientists from the Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences and the Geological Museum Giovanni Capellini of the University of Bologna discovered the skeletons of giant crocodiles representing a new species, Machimosaurus rex. The Tataouine governorate in southern Tunisia is becoming a pivotal region for our understanding of the ‘middle age’ of the dinosaur epoch. Since 2009, …